Mouth Infection – Causes of Mouth Infection

A mouth infection can have several causes ranging from a minor problem to something very serious. It can involve the teeth, gums, cheeks, lips and tonsils. It's rare that the tongue or the floor of the mouth becomes infected. When they do it's usually from trauma. There can be pain, bad breath, difficulty chewing which can aggravate a TMJ problem or systemic disease. A tooth infection is when a tooth dies and is treated with tooth extraction or a root canal. Dental infections can originate from a tooth abscess and if not treated aggressively can become serious.

Many of us surely have experienced (and in fact, some are still experiencing) that itchy soaring inside our mouth with those small burning white/yellowish spots? Remember the days when you wanted to taste your favorite food but the thrush in your mouth gave you sensation as if there is a burning coal kept in your mouth, which you cannot spit out but have to bare the burns/pain.

Any infection that occurs in ones mouth. See free access online books about Mouth infection below. See detailed information below for a list of 4 causes of Mouth infection, including diseases and drug side effect causes.

If you're a healthy adult with oral thrush, you may be able to control the infection by eating unsweetened yogurt or taking acidophilus capsules or liquid. Acidophilus is available in natural food stores and many drugstores. Some brands need to be refrigerated to maintain their potency. Yogurt and acidophilus don't destroy the fungus, but they can help restore the normal bacterial flora in your body. If this isn't effective, your doctor or dentist may prescribe an antifungal medication.

Causes of Mouth Infection

Small amounts of the candida fungus are present in the mouth, digestive tract, and skin of most healthy people and are normally kept in check by other bacteria and microorganisms in the body. However, certain illnesses, stress, or medications can disturb the delicate balance, causing the fungus candida to grow out of control, causing infection.

The two most common forms of the virus are herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). HSV-1 is most often associated with infections of the oral cavity, with 90 percent of the US population exposed to this virus. HSV-2 is most often associated with genital herpes infections, with 30 percent of the US population ages 25 to 45 exposed to this virus. However, research suggests that both types of HSV can infect both the mouth and the genitals.

Small amounts of fungus normally exist in your digestive tract and mouth and help your immune system. When, for different reasons, your body and immune system become out of balance, too much fungus can grow. This fungus is called Candida albicans and can grow beyond what the body can manage.

One common cause of mouth infections is an overgrowth of yeast. Like many forms of skin fungus, knowing yeast infection symptoms can help you identify and understand what is happening in your body.

Heredity plays a role in mouth health. The overall strength of teeth is generally passed on from parent to child. Other risk factors such as neglect and poor nutrition are controllable factors.

Long term mouth disease can lead to serious complications such as, chronic fatigue, blood infections, septic poisoning, and even death in rare cases. Complications from undiagnosed conjoining diseases are innumerable.

By: peterhutch

Remedies For Thrush - 5 Natural Remedies For Thrush

Here you'll discover 5 natural remedies for thrush. Natural remedies are on the increase for getting rid of thrush; partly because the usual drug-based treatments you get through prescription or over-the-counter only attack the local symptoms, not the root cause. As a result, many women and men suffer recurrent thrush. So they have been turning to natural remedies more and more. But some remedies for thrush work better for some people than others, so here you'll find 5 of the most popular and effective.

First up, let's see what actually causes your thrush. Thrush (yeast infection) is caused by the 'overgrow' of a natural fungus called Candida Albicans. It naturally resides in most of us without any problems, because our body's good bacteria keeps it under control. Now and again though, the Candida can multiply and overgrow into a state that causes thrush.

But why do natural remedies for thrush seem to do better than mainstream treatments? Your mainstream treatments are drug-based and usually applied directly to the thrush symptoms in the form of creams, pessaries, lotions etc. Firstly, they address the symptoms of your thrush, not the root cause. Secondly, the Candida fungi can become resistant to the drugs. So that many thrush victims suffer recurring attacks of thrush. So more and more are turning to natural remedies.

Here are 5 natural remedies for thrush:

Plain Yogurt

Yogurt is one of the most popular home remedies for thrush. But it has to be plain, sugarless, with no fruit or color. And it must have 'live and active cultures' on the label. This type of yogurt contains Lactobacillus acidophilus, a friendly bacteria which keeps the Candida fungi in check.

Raw Apple Cider Vinegar

First, this has to be raw, un-distilled and unpasteurized, with no preservatives nor additives. It is great for re-balancing body pH to help prevent the growth of Candida. To douche, add 2 tablespoons to 2 quarts of warm water. To bathe, use 2 cups to a low warm bath. To drink, add 2 teaspoons to a glass of water - 3 times a day.

Raw Garlic

Garlic is a natural antifungal agent. Crush a peeled clove of garlic into a paste and apply to the area. Internally, make up a tampon by wrapping a peeled clove in muslin or similar cloth and keep in over night. Repeat nightly until the symptoms vanish.

Tea Tree Oil

This is a natural antiseptic. Just add a couple of drops into a nice warm bath and bathe in it. It can cause 'stinging' for some folks. If this is you, just sluice with fresh cold water and stop using it. Try another natural remedy.

Cranberries

Cranberries have natural antibacterial properties. Use only fresh cranberries or unsweetened cranberry juice. Never use sweetened juice because the sugar will feed the Candida yeast fungi.

These are just 5 of the most popular natural remedies for thrush out there. And on their own, or in combination, they can be quite effective. But for a guaranteed cure for thrush you need to also address things that can help 'trigger' the Candida fungi to overgrow; things like lowered immune system, antibiotics use, drug habits, bad diet, oral contraceptives, diabetes, underlying medical conditions, etc. This takes a more wide-ranging approach to a complete cure and has to include things like diet and lifestyle.

By John Cielo

How to Heal Cuts in the Corner of the Mouth

Those of us who experience awful cuts in the corner of the mouth called Angular Cheilitis know that it is painful and embarrassing and often extremely hard to get rid of.

Cuts and lesions that appear at any part of the body that constantly moves around such as the inside of the elbow, finger joints and the back of the knees are very hard to heal because the skin expands and retracts as we move about. The mouth is probably the worst of these cases however as it is in constant use talking and eating and is often wet and many substances pass by it such as food and our hands that may contain problematic bacteria that can infect it. Angular Cheilitis in fact usually becomes much worse because the cuts become infected often with Candida albicans also known as thrush which causes the corner of the mouth to become inflamed, itchy and often covered in sores and crust.

To understand how to heal your cuts and stop them coming back you must understand the cause of this condition. Angular Cheilitis is typically caused by a lack of vitamins within a person's diet focusing mainly on vitamin B and iron deficiencies that have a marked effect on your skin and especially the corners of your mouth. This is sometimes initiative of a poor diet and malnutrition but can also because by a number of other reasons why your body may be deficient in these things.

Making up these deficiencies in your body is of prime importance to keeping the cuts from reappearing but will not solve your immediate skin problem. Most doctors recommend certain types of lip balm and anti-fungal creams but many patients report little success with many of these and using them becomes very difficult as you often end up licking the substance which tastes terrible and makes it useless as the bacteria thrives on moisture which is readily available at the corners of your mouth.

So what is the best way to heal cuts in the corner of your mouth if it is such a good place for infections to grow? The need is for a treatment that deprives the affected area of moisture and will not be washed away during the natural course of the day.

If you need a natural treatment to heal your Angular Cheilitis that puts all pharmaceutical medicines to shame and is guaranteed to work click below to find out the secret!

Author: Michael Porteous

 

Coconut Oil - A Natural Mouth Ulcer Cure

A mouth ulcer is an open wound in the mouth where tender nerve endings are exposed and can often cause extreme pain to the person who is affected with them especially when they can become irritated. Often a person suffering from mouth ulcers will find it difficult to eat, drink and sometimes even talk and unfortunately these exposed ulcers are vulnerable to infection by bacteria that is find in our mouth and unfortunately create even more pain.

Many mouth ulcers often seem to start off as a small bubble or blister which then becomes open and ulcerated and this is when the pain really starts. However, they can be caused accidentally by someone biting themselves or there lips are so dry that they crack and then the ulcers begin to form on their lips.

Normally mouth ulcers are caused by either virus, bacteria or fungus and may result in the body's own immune system attacking the mucosal lining of the mouth. In some cases people who suffer from either Ulcerative Colitis or Crohn's Disease (intestinal conditions) may find themselves suffering from mouth ulcers also.

A good way of treating mouth ulcers is with coconut oil which kills the bacteria that causes them. It is also good for treating throat infections, gum disease and cavities. Certainly the Pacific Islanders who have a coconut based diet have excellent dental health and rarely suffer from mouth ulcers even when they have never brushed their teeth or used floss or anti-bacterial mouthwash.

Certainly coconut oil is ideal for helping to relieve the pain felt from mouth ulcers instantly all you need is get a tablespoon of coconut oil and hold it for a minute on the mouth ulcer. Soon you will feel the pain going away and this relief seems to last for quite a while because of the MCFA's (medium chain fatty acids) find in coconut oil which are rapidly absorbed in to the body and thus the healing process is accelerated.

The way coconut oil works is that it has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties and which can help to combat viruses, bacteria and fungus that can be found in a persons mouth and will cause ulcers. The MCFA's which are in coconut oil also help to enhance the body's own immune system and thus help it to fight viruses, fungus and bacterial problems. Also coconut oil is great for helping a person's intestinal system by killing any fungi found in the intestinal tract.

Above are a number of reasons as to why coconut oil can not only help to treat and heal mouth ulcers but also to help prevent them from forming. Also coconut oil is not messy to apply to the ulcer and is completely edible and natural.

By Lee Dobbins